National Center for Health in Public Housing
Quarterly Newsletter
June 2014
The Mission of the National Center for Health in Public Housing (NCHPH) is to strengthen the capacity of federally funded Public Housing Primary Care (PHPC) health centers and other health center grantees by providing training and a range of technical assistance.
Mental Health and Public Housing Residents
laughing-ladies-fam.jpg Mental health includes a person's emotional, psychological, and social well-being. The number of PHPC patients receiving a mental health diagnosis increased by 37% from 2008 to 2010. Healthcare providers working with public housing residents or low-income populations need to be aware that there may be higher rates of depression, anxiety, stress, and other triggers of mental illness in their special population.

 

The Affordable Care Act improves access to and affordability of mental health services.  It also provides funding for mental health services to help Community Health Centers integrate primary care and mental health services. 

 
Click here to learn more about mental health among public housing and low-income populations. 
Breastfeeding
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The benefits of breastfeeding are many: 

  • the joyful bonding of a mother and baby, 
  • the cost savings, and 
  • the health benefits for both mother and baby. 

Despite the known benefits of breastfeeding, it remains a major public health challenge among certain populations. There are many things public health professionals and health care workers can do to encourage and support low-income families to breastfeed their babies.  

  

Click here to learn more about promoting breastfeeding. 
Board Governance and Your Health Center
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Health Center Governing Boards are critical to the existence and advancement of PHPCs. Individuals who commit their time and energy to serving on Boards give substantively to their communities.  Recently, HRSA issued a Policy Information Notice (PIN) to clarify governance requirements for all look-alikes and Health Center Program grantees.

 

 

 

The PIN:

  • Clarifies requirements regarding the structure and
    functioning of governing boards for all Health Center Program grantees
  • Provides clarification regarding co-applicant board requirements
  • Establishes Health Resources and Services Administration policy that eliminates the monthly
    meeting requirement from waiver consideration.
 Click here to learn more about Board Governance.  
Improving vaccine coverage in low-income communities

Immunizations are a successful and cost-effective method for disease prevention. Obstacles to vaccine delivery result in low coverage, allowing for disease outbreaks in some populations, for example, those living in public housing.   Immunization coverage rates in low-income communities can be improved by addressing the known barriers to vaccine completion. 

 

To learn more about improving vaccine coverage among low-income populations, please click here. 
Current Events
Archived Webinars: 

 

 
NCHPH, a project of North American Management, receives funding through a cooperative agreement grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration.

 

This publication was made possible by grant number U30CS09734 from the Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Primary Health Care and its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of HRSA.